In today’s Los Angeles Times, there is a great feature on Juan Pierre by Kevin Baxter, who just re-joined the newspaper after several years at the Miami Herald. Kevin, who also speaks Spanish, should bring a different perspective to many of the baseball articles throughout the year and we’re looking forward to having him around at Dodger Stadium.

Another thing I really want to point out is the photo album on the front of dodgers.com. As far as I know, we’re the only team in all of baseball that has a daily photo album from Spring Training. Jon SooHoo does an awesome job trying to give fans an idea of what is going on down here on a daily basis and just in case some of you don’t get to look at it each day, you should make it a point to check these out.

In regards to the trade winds that you’re asking about, it’s safe to say they’re always blowing this time of year. While I don’t really ask Ned or Kim about what’s about to happen, I do know that there are a lot of GMs talking to one another right now because teams are getting a better idea of what they have in camp, the health of their team and what they are able to part with. That’s not to say we’re going to make a trade anytime soon, but it’s safe to say that it’s a possibility. I know that’s vague, but that’s the best I can tell you right now.

And finally, as for an email address where you can send your complaints regarding any issues with KFWB, this is just as good of an outlet as any, as broadcasting is also part of my responsibilities at the Dodgers. As I’ve stated in the past, we’re working very hard with KFWB to try and make this a partnership that works for the fans and though I’m not fully aware of what happened last night since I’m here in Florida and it took place at 11 p.m., I will certainly check in with my contacts there and try to figure out how to avoid those problems again.

41 Comments

I can live with the KFWB broadcasts of the Dodger games, but is there any was that they can include the games on their On-line broadcast? This would sure be helpful to our many great Dodger fans who are well out of range of the Dodgers radio network (and I can listen while at work, where I am unable to receive any AM signals).

josh
living in orange co. i wish the dodgers were on a strong all sports radio station. the kfwb signal is weak in south co.and today for example the san diego station (1090)is doing their broadcast from spring training. i miss the days of when the main topic on radio was the dodgers. look at what 570 is doing for the lakers or 710 for the angels. we should be most promoted team in southern cal.

blue bleeder- if you and many have complained for many years and the problem is only getting worse with every season, what makes you think the Dodgers will do something about it?
Everyone needs to write in to this BLOG and/ or call the Dodgers directly and let them know how they feel.

The Dodgers need to be proactive and do something about their flailing presence on the airwaves. The Dodgers should be represented more prommenantly than ANY other sports franchise in So. Cal. L.A. Soccer is easier to find on the dial.

Otherwise in a few years the kids of today will be taking their kids and spending their money on soccer games while thinking of Beckam’s glory days.

The Dodgers need to not take the fans for granted and this lax showing on KFWB is exactly that.

kssparkuhl
Thanks for the concern but today’s lesson is being drawn from “The Templars”, by P. P. Read, about the military orders during the crusades and how those lessons might apply to the Middle-East today.

knouffbrock… as the great Gordon M. Sumner once composed, “History Will Teach Us Nothing”… and this especially rings true when speaking of the Middle-East where three different religious ideologies all claim ownership of one tiny piece of the world. Some things will never change…

KFWB is absolutely horrible when it comes to covering the Dodgers. Even more of a problem is L.A. sports radio in general. The only thing they talk about is the Lakers. You never hear them talk Dodger baseball. Dodger coverage on the radio is far and few between, and for me its frustrating to say the least. The Dodgers, first and foremost, need to pick up sticks and walk away from KFWB and find themselves a station dedicated to them and their fans.

I also do not like the pre game and post game programs on KFWB. The pregame show is too disjointed with little real content and the post game show breaks too often for news and traffic. But remember that the Dodgers have been all over the radio and TV dials over the years. They began on KFI which is a 50,000 watt station and can be heard all over Southern California. After many years the Dodgers switched to KABC and things were great. However, KABC developed into a strong following with their regular talk programs and decided they did not want to devote so much time to the Dodgers. So the broadcasts moved again to 1150, which as we all recall was a sports station but had poor reception and ratings, which prompted a move to KFWB. The Dodgers commercial TV broadcasts have moved around as well. What does this mean to me? As much as we value the radio and TV broadcasts, there might not be enough viewers/listeners to attract the big advertising dollars when compared to general programming. The question is can the Dodgers find a radio station that has a decent signal and the willingness to devote air time to better pre and post game programs? Let’s hope so.

Josh, thanks for the info on John SooHoo’s photo coverage on the official website. I’ve been giving it a look everyday, and now knowing we’re the only team that does it daily (and sometimes twice daily), please extend my appreciation and thanks to Mr. SooHoo for his hard work.

Dr. J, thanks for the laughs, it was quite fun looking at that pic of Zito and laughing out loud up here at the Student Union at Chico State (which is Giants country, but there are a lot of SoCal transplants sporting blue, as well as some Pads fans). The Barry pic was good for a laugh too, maybe he and Zito should have a catfight as the Paulas and air it on TV, laughter is the best medicine.

After reading the LA Times today and hearing what Wills and Grady have been saying about JP, tell me again why anyone would be upset with the Dodgers signing JP ??? This guy is a work horse and team player to the MAX !!! Everyone needs to give this guy the benefit of at least seeing what he’s all about in a Dodger uniform before they pass judgement !!

I didn’t know who to thank for the daily pictures, but I did notice that the Dodgers website always has updated photos. I was especially pleased with the uploaded photos of stadium renovation last year. And yes, I do look at the photos everyday. Thank you again, and I can’t wait till Thursday!

garysmith: I don’t believe that the Dodger uniform is a magic garment that will transform players or restore them to the days of their youth. Juan Pierre has played over 1000 major league games – surely you’ve seen some of them – and we have a very good picture of what he is and what he isn’t, between the lines. If he somehow bounces back from two very poor years and reverts to the 2003-2004 Pierre who was an average to slightly above average batsman with an acceptable OBP of .361 to .374, that might be ok, but five years of that (highly unlikely) is still not worth $44 million.

Still and all, Go Dodgers.

bluebleeder: I wouldn’t expect to get ANY L.A. radio station all the way up in (Ross) Porterville.

give it a rest guys for the 15th time. i dont think anyone that has payed attention to baseball the last 6 years liked the pierre signing, we are all well aware of that. now will you please hold your judgements to yourself until we at least see one at bat from him. the game of baseball does not get played on a piece of paper or for that matter over a computer in a dodgers blog, give the guy a rest how many times can you guys beat the same dead horse? GO DODGERS!!!!!!

Somebody asks why anybody thought the Pierre signing was bad. People answered that person. Don’t get mad that Old Fogy and patriotacts responded to a question asked by another poster. I agree, let’s sit back and let Pierre play. And when he does, and replicates his subpar numbers, some people are going to have some crow to eat.

Well said Graffiti !! I just wish we could all see the glass as half full instead of half empty. Waiting to say I told you so is such a waste of time. Waiting to see the Dodger’s win a game and a player develop into something great is so much more rewarding.

or what about when he puts up decent numbers and you JP haters will still whine about him and complain hes having a career year, with your guys attitudes towards him i can totally see that happening. just say for fun JP is leading the league in triples, how could you guys spin that? the bottom line is lets see some ab’s before you psychics start penciling in his stats. im with you gary and you wont catch me playing mousepad GM until i at least see 100 AB’s, then if hes batting 274 and just stifling our offense and only then will i whine that it was a bad move. no one can sit here and tell me that kenny lofton didnt cost us runs in centerfield last year. i can recall three balls he misjudged very badly that cost us. i dont care what anyone says but juan pierre is pretty much kenny lofton without a bum hamstring if you ask me.

I’m sorry I just can’t do it !!! I just can’t help but respond to Old Fogy on the point of JP having 2 bad years. I wish we had every player who had a bad year, with a bad team and still hit 300 avg and got 200+ base hits. I think our offense can put that to great use. But that’s just my opinion.

The photos from Spring Training are GREAT !!! Keep them coming Josh, please let Jon SooHoo know that we really appreciate them. Makes us feel like we’re part of the experience. And speaking as one who has been there many times !! You should all try to make it to Vero Beach before they move, it’s HISTORY folks, like no other baseball experience !!!

graffitigenius:
1. I would never judge Pierre on his first 100 or so PAs at the start of this season, very small sample size compared to his 4500 career PAs that are a very good indicator of what his capabilities are. (Remember Mike Ramsey, the CF? He was great for about three to four weeks and didn’t last the season. Streaks happen.)

2. Dale Murphy? What is your point? He had above average OBPs and mostly great SLG %s (top-10 in 80,2,3,4,5,7) in all his peak years (and they were very good ones WITH A LOT OF POWER) and below-average OBPs with average SLG % in his off-years.

garysmith:

1.Tony Graffanino would have 195 hits if he was sent to the plate as often as Pierre. Tony G. is a below average ballplayer. You’d have 200 hits if they gave you enough chances. And JP has had THREE bad years and three good ones, with two of the bad ones being the most recent two. Trend? Maybe.

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